Shifters Hallows Eve

by Lori King

  Eden’s stomach twisted, and she fought the urge to vomit. Had he raped the girl?

  “I kissed her then and there, and fondled her. In front of everyone. She ran screaming from the room after giving my face a vicious smack.” For the first time in his speech, Gideon turned his head to face her, “It turns out she was the daughter of my opponent, Jacob Renault. One of my friends carted her away from her home, thinking she would make a grand congratulations gift to me, as well as a statement to her father. If I ruined her, it would tarnish his reputation as well, and he would not be able to run for office against me again. It was stupid. It was insane. And it was done. I could not take back what had happened, but that did not stop her father from seeking his revenge. I recall very little from the morning after the celebration. My head was clouded from whiskey and arrogance. I had planned to attend a boar hunt with several of the local businessmen, but I never made it there. A man met me in the woods on my way to town. He wore a black suit, and I recall thinking it was the same blue-black of a raven’s wing. Before I could speak, I felt myself fall from the saddle, and when I awoke, I was trapped in this house, and in the body of an animal. The only time I can physically feel anything is when I am in my shifted form. Otherwise, I am nothing but a misty sigh on the air.”

  Eden sat quietly for a moment just taking in what he’d said. While it was a fabulous story, surely there was no truth behind it. He was here with her now. A fully formed man, physically able to touch her.

  “Okay, so, thanks for the story,” she rose, and took a step backward. To her surprise Gideon leapt to his feet and faced her.

  “It is true, Eden. Every word. I realize it must sound mad, but—”

  “I’m just going to get going now. I mean, you must have something planned for your evening; otherwise, why would you be here in Black Castle, alone on Halloween? I know I wouldn’t want to keep you any longer, and you clearly have some personal dilemma you’re dealing with.” She had no clue was she was saying anymore. It was all just nonsensical babble as she moved backward toward the doorway. Gideon stood between her and the balcony, so she’d have to find an alternate way out of the house, but she was most certainly leaving.

  Spinning, she took off at a dead run for the stairwell, leaving Gideon in all his naked glory behind. She stumbled on the last step, but caught herself on the banister just as a bird squawked past her ear ruffling her hair. Crying out in fear, she batted at the creature with one hand while running toward the boarded-up front door. Downstairs, there was no light at all, and the darkness was suffocating. She began to panic as she tugged at the wooden planks trying to pull them free. Behind her the bird let out another eerie sound, and her heart lurched.

  “Eden, wait!”

  Gideon’s voice sounded like it was right behind her, and above her, and somehow even below her. What the hell? She froze in place and stared into the darkness, still facing the boarded up door. When a warm hand settled on her shoulder she began to tremble.

  “Please let me go?” she whispered.

  “I would never seek to keep you where you did not want to be, my lady.” Gideon’s voice rumbled softly now, sliding along her skin like his fingers had before. “I only ask that you open your mind. I never believed in such magic when I was alive either, and yet, here I am, victim of a callous curse of revenge. All because of my own greed and selfishness.”

  “You’re c-crazy.” Her body was shaking so hard, her words were stuttered. Fighting to slow her breathing before she hyperventilated, Eden’s brain started searching for a reasonable explanation to the situation. This wasn’t real. None of it. She was either A: hallucinating, or B: dreaming. Yes, dreaming. That’s what it had to be. She’d obviously fallen asleep in her sleeping bag and the environment had wreaked havoc on her subconscious. Turning around slowly, she could just make out the impression of Gideon’s form as her eyes adjusted to the dark. He only stood a few inches taller than her, but there was something about his presence that was enormous. “It’s a dream, Eden. You’re dreaming. It’s time to wake up now.”

  “You are not dreaming. I am as real as you are…er…well, I am right now, anyway. I do not know what magic has come with you this night, but with it, I have been able to enjoy your company. Please do not leave me to spend the rest of the night alone. I have no idea if the morning will find me back in my spiritual form, or if I will finally be able to break free of my curse.”

  “I hit my head when I fell. That’s what it is. I have a concussion. I’m probably still lying upstairs, unconscious. Carly will have to come looking for me tomorrow, and I’ll likely have bled out. All because I have no cell service in the middle of the woods.” She started to push past him, but he pulled her close, pressing her face into his throat.

  “Stop looking for an explanation and trust yourself, Eden.”

  She inhaled deeply and her senses filled with his addictive scent again. “I want to believe this is real, but I just can’t. If you’re telling the truth, that means that after tonight I will probably never see you again.”

  The words spilled out of her, ripping free of her mind even as the truth set in. A small part of her did believe what he was saying, and that was what scared her so much. She shivered, and pressed closer to him, absorbing his warmth. As their bodies made complete contact, it dawned on her that he was still naked.

  “Why aren’t you dressed?” she asked, perplexed at how warm he was in spite of the night air on his bare skin.

  “You ran away, and I did not slow down to put clothing on. Besides, I do not need clothing in my shifted form.”

  The words brought goosebumps to her arms. “Shifted form. You said that before. What does that mean?”

  Gideon took a small step backward, and began to draw her toward the staircase again. “Let us go back upstairs. You can wrap up in that blanket so that you are warmer.”

  “Gideon, tell me. What do you mean, shifted form?”

  “It is part of the curse. I can shift into a—”

  A loud thud startled both of them, ending their conversation. Gideon spun toward the noise, putting himself between her and whoever – or whatever – else was in the house.

  “What was that?” she hissed, trying to peer around his frame into the dark.

  “You do not want to know.” He responded simply, shaking his head. “Come, we must go upstairs now.”

  Before they could take more than a couple of steps, the whole house shook and a loud wail filled the air. Eden had never known fear like this. While the idea of Gideon being a ghost of some sort was scary, the creature currently moving about the house was sure to be horrifying.

  “Gideon, I’m scared.”

  He turned slightly to cup her face, and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I will protect you, my lady. You have my word.”

  It sounded corny, but she totally soaked it up. She’d never been with someone who wanted to protect her. Then again, she’d never really been in a situation where she needed protecting, either. Coming here tonight was a really stupid decision.

  Somewhere behind the stairs and to the right, a door creaked on its hinges, and footsteps moved closer. Eden held her breath until a person-shaped shadow came into view. The temperature dropped at least twenty degrees, and her trembling turned into vicious shivering.

  * * *

  Gideon stared in horror at the face that had haunted him for the last century. While Eden had normal human vision, and could likely only make out shadows, his view of the spirit in front of them was clear.

  “What have we here?” the creature growled at him. “Another innocent ruined by the likes of the devil?”

  “Leave her alone. She has no part in this.” Gideon hissed back. He felt Eden flinch at the spirit’s voice, but thankfully she remained quiet. “Why are you here?”

  “Her magic drew me. Just as it drew you from the shadows. I am here for your reckoning, my friend. I warned you that you would pay for what you had done to my daughter.” His nemesis lurched closer, and Gide
on gave Eden a nudge toward the stairs. He had no idea what was going to happen, but he would give his life to protect her.

  “I have spent over one hundred years paying penance for that one kiss.”

  The man roared with anger, “One kiss that ruined my daughter. She had no marriage prospects, and no future after you assaulted her in front of half the township. I was ruined because I was accused of murdering you, and she was shamed. My only child died alone and crying. I was there watching, and I have promised every day since your curse took effect that I would ensure you spent eternity paying.”

  “You cursed me to live in this hell, because I made a mistake. A horrible mistake. No one told me who she was.” Gideon shrugged his shoulders, “Perhaps it would not have mattered if I did know who she was, but I am not the man I was then.”

  “No, you certainly are not. Now you are a foul, winged creature. A harbinger of death and destruction.” The man growled low in his throat, “And with the strength of her magic giving us both physical form, we can end this here and now.”

  Eden seemed to slump against Gideon’s back suddenly, and he spun to catch her before she slid to the floor. Staring down into her pale face, he felt his heart break. “What are you doing to her?”

  “Siphoning the magic I will need to strip the last of your humanity from your soul. I want to watch you burn in hell.” The other man lunged at Gideon, who had turned his back in order to remain between his woman and his threat.

  A streak of intense pain shot through him when the other man’s nails dug into his back, tearing into his skin. Gideon cried out in agony, and beneath him, he felt Eden relax into a completely unconscious state. She was limp, unable to protect herself. This demon creature would surely kill them both. Anger filled him, and reaching over his head he gripped the other man by the stringy hair and threw him up, over, and across the room.

  “Renault, you will not steal another life,” he bellowed at his enemy, completely oblivious to the physical pain of his wounds as he marched across the room. Lifting his nemesis into the air by the throat, Gideon could feel raw power surging through his veins giving him a superhuman strength he had never experienced. “I made a mistake. A terrible, regrettable, mistake, and you have seen fit to punish me with this curse for a century and more. No longer will I be at your mercy. Jacob Renault, I pray to all that is holy, and all that is not, that you suffer the same heinous prison sentence that I have. Your greed hath put you here, as mine did, and together we shall rot.”

  Gideon proceeded to squeeze Renault’s throat until his eyes bulged and he slumped into a pile of grotesque, soulless flesh. He had no idea if it was even possible to end the other lifeform, or if he’d merely shut him up for now, but at least he would have time to secure Eden’s safety.

  Without hesitation, he scooped her into his arms and carried her limp body up the stairs to his bedroom. Laying her on the pallet where they had made love, he pressed a kiss to her temple and whispered, “Please, come back to me, my love.”

  5

  Awareness came to Eden slowly, like waves lapping at the sand, with each gentle touch, a new piece of her came awake. She could feel Gideon’s arms, and his scent surrounded her, but she had no idea what had happened. The last thing she recalled was a scary beast of a man threatening them downstairs, what had happened to him?

  Blinking in confusion, she realized that Gideon’s face was buried in her neck. He was weeping and pleading with her not to die. He seemed so forlorn that it broke her heart.

  She tried to lift her hand, but the most she could do was wiggle her fingers a bit. The movement caught Gideon’s attention and his head jerked up.

  “Eden?” He peered down at her, his face breaking into a wide grin that stole her breath. Damn the man was beautiful. “Thank the heavens you are alive. I thought Renault had killed you.”

  “Wh-Who?” Her voice was hoarse, and she swallowed hard, surprised by how exhausted she felt.

  “Jacob Renault. The man who paid a witch to curse me. He attacked us below stairs.” Gideon frowned, “Do you not remember?”

  “I think I hit my head too hard.” She mumbled, trying to piece together the night’s insane events.

  “Again? Did you hit your head again? I tried to catch you—”

  “Maybe I’m still dreaming. Did you say you were cursed by a witch?” Even as confused and frightening as his words were, she still felt one hundred percent safe in Gideon’s arms. For a journalist, she sure wasn’t finding it easy to be objective tonight.

  “Yes, I told you the story of how I came to be a shifter, and how I have been restricted to my home in this spiritual form for so many years. I believe Renault’s spirit has been lying in wait for the right fracture in the space between planes…”

  “Planes? He’s waiting for a plane?”

  “He is a spirit. A ghost, just like I am. I do not know if he, too, has the ability to shift into an animal, but…” Gideon’s words drifted off and he gave her a peculiar look. “He said he was drawing on your magic. That you were the reason he and I were able to take on a human form tonight.”

  “I’m not magic. I’m just a regular old news reporter. Granted, I’ve never quite come across a story like this one, but,” she shrugged, and managed to lift her hand finally, wincing when sharp tingles spread throughout the limb, “I’m still just Eden Meade.”

  Gideon looked relieved, “I really do not know what he was referring to then. He did seem to draw something out of you. Like a life force you had no control over.”

  Eden pondered his words for a moment. There were too many questions that didn’t seem to have any answers. She hated unanswered questions. It was the reason she’d gone into journalism in the first place. Magic wasn’t real. Just like ghosts, and shifters, and…witches. Her heart lurched in her chest and she filled Gideon in on her thoughts. “You know, when I was young, my grandfather used to talk about his mother’s magic. I never really thought of it as anything other than an old man’s admiration for his mother, but perhaps…”

  “What was her name?”

  “Whose name?”

  “Your great-grandmother? What was her name?”

  Eden shivered, “I don’t know. Um…it was something unusual...with an A.”

  “Amalie?”

  With his one word, the temperature in the room dropped and Eden’s shivers intensified. Her teeth chattered against each other as she tried to speak. “H-How di-d y-ou kn-ow?”

  “Because my daughter’s name was Amalie Renault.” The voice, which had been booming before, was now as soft as the rustle of the leaves. Eden wasn’t even sure she’d heard it correctly, but she turned toward it instinctively.

  In the doorway where she’d first laid eyes on Gideon, now stood a much less threatening version of the man who’d attacked them. The anger had fled from his countenance, and in its place only sorrow and shock remained.

  “You are blood of my blood. My great-great-granddaughter.” Jacob Renault directed his statement to her, but he was staring at Gideon the whole time. “You ruined Amalie.”

  “You said she died alone. How is that possible if she had a child?” Gideon accused. Eden watched the two men square off, but she felt the change in their demeanors. Neither held the fury from before.

  “Her reputation in tatters, she asked me to allow her to travel to visit my brother’s family in Vicksburg. When she returned, she was with child. You know what a ruined woman faced in those days. She refused to seek a doctor, but she agreed to visit the witch I had cast the curse on you. Even after they met, she pursued the pregnancy and delivered a son.”

  “My grandfather.” Eden murmured, all the facts linking up in her brain. She was the descendant of the woman Gideon had assaulted.

  “The child was ten when Amalie succumbed to her weak heart, but those ten years were pure hell for both of them. No one in the community ever believed the child was anything but the son of Gideon Blackburn, who had gone missing a decade before.” Jacob finally turned
to face Eden. “I believe Amalie sought the witch in order to right my wrong. I believe she requested he give Gideon a chance to break his curse. I wish with all my heart, she had not done that.”

  “If she hadn’t delivered her son, I wouldn’t be here.” Eden snapped.

  “You are suggesting there is a way to break my curse?” Gideon’s words held so much hope that Eden felt her heart trip for him. He had been stuck in a kind of limbo for so long, the idea of escaping it was nearly overwhelming him.

  “I cannot let it happen,” Jacob hissed. “You must pay for the offense against my daughter.”

  Eden’s temper sparked, and she stepped between the two men before she could stop herself. “Don’t you think he’s suffered enough? A century locked between worlds? That’s more than a lifetime of punishment. Let him go. Let this go.”

  “But Amalie…”

  “He apologized to you for what happened to your—err…our family. What more do you want from him? Amalie bore a child, but it wasn’t Gideon’s,” she glanced over her shoulder and met Gideon’s gaze, “that I believe with my whole heart. She chose the life she wanted for herself when she decided to give birth.”

  Jacob lifted his hands helplessly, “But…I…just…”

  “Let it go. If you loved Amalie the way you say you did, then you’ll accept that she chose to do what was right. Gideon made a mistake—as did his friends—that night, and then you made a mistake when you sought out a witch to curse him. In my book, your offense was much worse. You took a life.” Eden glared at the man who claimed to be her Great-great grandfather.